"They were taken under the urgency procedure but, as the Community Health Council pointed out to the Health Minister, problems within the maternity services had been in evidence months before.

“Senior officials within the Health Board have raised the idea of concentrating different health services on one site so that the three hospitals in North Wales operate as one. But there has been no proper discussion of this proposal. Such a radical rethink of our health services needs to be the subject of widespread consultation.

“My own view is that the concept of one hospital on three sites will not work in North Wales given the geography and long distances that make travelling across our region very difficult.

"Many patients would be left isolated from their families unless specialist medical teams become more mobile or there is major investment in public transport.”